Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Moorad on Gonzalez

Might the Padres trade Adrian Gonzalez? Not a chance of it anytime soon, if soon means before October. And even in the offseason, he absolutely will not be going onto the trade block, says Jeff Moorad. The CEO didn't rule out listening to other clubs at some point this offseason, which only makes sense. Here is my related column for voiceofsandiego.org --http://tinyurl.com/adriangonzalez ... Chatted with pitching coach Darren Balsley today about Mat Latos and Tim Stauffer. Balsley tends to be measured, but he's thrilled to work with Latos. He is encouraged that Stauffer was going after hitters on Monday.

Stauffer prompts a brief digression here. When he nobly revealed a shoulder ailment in the summer of 2003, not long after the Padres drafted him, the club was able to sign him for about $1.7 million less than it planned to offer him. I still wonder where that money went, especially the following year, when the Padres went against their scouts and chose Matt Bush over Stephen Drew...The Marlins are in town, which usually makes for an interesting opponent. I know the Marlins never have won a division title, but they do have two World Series trophies. And in other years, I've been impressed by how competitive they can be despite extremely low payrolls. Plus, the weather in Miami would destroy many San Diegans, and the rainstorms can disrupt a pitching staff. Maybe the Padres should study how the Marlins go about it. I know they have some excellent scouts and a streamlined, coherent front office.